Dodgers vs Braves: Five things to know, predictions as to how to watch Freddie Freeman take on former club

On Monday night, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves rekindled their recent rivalry by kicking off a three-game series at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers beat the Braves in the NLCS en route to the 2020 World Series title, then the Braves beat the Dodgers in the NLCS en route to the 2021 World Series title. These teams have played many important games against each other over the past two years .

“When you come up against a really good ball club on the Braves, people always try to say it’s a litmus test or a barometer. But I think it’s a good ball club that we’re trying to win a series with,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters, including the Los Angeles Times’ Jack Harris, on Sunday. “It’s going to be a fun series and it’s a very good ball club. They kicked us out of the postseason last year. But it’s a different year. So I would expect us to have the same focus as we did against the Reds (in the past). weekend) than the Braves.”

The defending champions of the World Series are 5-6 in the starting blocks. The Dodgers are tied with (who else?) the Giants for baseball’s best record at 7-2. They have beaten their opponents 51-24 in their nine games. Here are the details for this week’s Dodgers vs. Braves series at Dodger Stadium. MLB Network games can be streamed on fuboTV (try for free).

Kershaw was of course removed from his first start of the season after seven perfect innings. He’s pitched 80 pitches and, like pretty much every other pitcher in baseball, isn’t fully stretched out after brief spring training. On paper, the match between Fried and Buehler is the best this three-game series has to offer.

Here are five things to know about this week’s Dodgers vs. Braves series at Dodger Stadium, with a prediction thrown in, because why not?

1. Familiar faces in new places.

Understandably, the focus of this series will be Freddie Freeman. Freeman played 12 seasons with the Braves — signing a team-friendly extension, prevailing through a rebuild, winning an MVP and helping them win a World Series — before joining his hometown Dodgers this past offseason. It was frankly shocking. It seemed a fait accompli that Freeman would re-sign with Atlanta.

“I didn’t think I’d ever get a free hand, if we’re being honest,” Freeman said during his introductory press conference. “…The emotions were everywhere. If you spend 15 years in one place and see that chapter closed right then and there, I haven’t really spoken for a couple of hours, just trying to figure it all out.”

However, Freeman isn’t the only star player set to face off against his former team for the first time in this series. Longtime Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen signed with Atlanta in the winter. Unlike Freeman, who had serious talks with the Braves about a reunion, there never seemed to be much traction between the Dodgers and Jansen this offseason. At least not publicly.

“I will never say I wanted to go back to LA; I’ll go where I want to go,” Jansen told The New York Times’ Scott Miller last weekend. “That blue will be in my blood for the rest of my life. Everywhere I go, people tell me I’m a Dodger. It’s just the business side. For obvious reasons, it didn’t work out for either of us. We both tried, but it didn’t happen.”

Additionally, the Dodgers acquired Craig Kimbrel to replace Jansen as their closer, and Kimbrel spent the first five seasons of his career with the Braves. Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud spent about a week with the Dodgers in 2019, and then there’s the Will Smiths (Wills Smith?). The Dodgers Catcher and Braves Lefty share a name but not much else, although they do have a history:

Freeman given the Braves and Jansen’s return to Los Angeles will be the big stories of this series, and that’s understandable. Freeman is one of the greatest Braves of all time (surely they’re going to retire his No. 5, right?) and Jansen is the greatest assist in Dodgers history. No pitcher has appeared in more games for Los Angeles than Kenley. Both were central figures in their team’s most recent championship.

2. Who’s Hot, Who’s Not?

The season is young and like every other season in baseball history, some players started better than others. Here are three Braves hitters who really rip the cover off the ball in the early days:

Olson, who was taken on pre-emptively by the Athletics to replace Freeman, was outstanding early on this year. He has more walks (11) than strikeouts (8) and leads baseball in times on base (27). Ozuna missed much of last season with a finger injury and also while under investigation under MLB’s domestic violence policy. In the beginning he produced at a high level.

On the other hand, Atlanta is still waiting for Dansby Swanson (.158/.238/.263) and postseason hero Eddie Rosario (.034/.152/.034) to get started on the plate. Alex Dickerson and Guillermo Heredia are a combined 3 for 31 (.097) coming off the bench this season. Now, here are three Dodgers players making it shine in the early days of 2022:

Freeman didn’t race in his first race of the season until Saturday, although he was still very productive. The Dodgers traded AJ Pollock for Kimbrel and that opened up a slot for Lux to take full advantage. Taylor signed a new four-year deal over the winter and has been productive as always.

Los Angeles is still waiting for Mookie Betts (.206/.289/.265) and Justin Turner (.235/.316/.265) to find their punch. The same goes for Max Muncy (.167/.342/.333), who is returning after suffering an elbow injury on the final day of the 2021 regular season.

3. It’s an NLCS rematch.

Technically a rematch of a rematch. As previously mentioned, the Braves and Dodgers have met in the last two National League Championship Series. The Dodgers came back from a 3-1 deficit to win the 2020 NLCS and the Braves won the 2021 NLCS in six games. These two clubs met five times in the post-season:

• NLCS 2021: Good in 6th
• NLCS 2020: Dodgers in 7th
• NLDS 2018: Dodgers in the 4th
• NLDS 2013: Dodgers in the 4th
• 1996 NLDS: Brave in the 3rd

Of course, what happened in last year’s postseason has no bearing on this year’s regular season. Both the Braves and Dodgers are among the best teams in the league this year, which should make for an exciting streak. Recent postseason history will add a little spice to it all.

4. Neither team is at full strength

Unfortunately, the Braves and Dodgers are missing key players through injuries. Ronald Acuña Jr. is on the mend (and about to start a rehab assignment) after tearing his cruciate ligament last July, and Atlanta is eyeing a “loose” return date in early May. When he’s healthy, Acuña is easily one of the best players in the game. At the time of the injury last season, he was at an MVP pace, if not the MVP leader.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, are without a boss Dustin May, who is working his way back from the Tommy John operation. He went under the knife last May and hinted he won’t return to the Dodgers until much later in the season, possibly August or even September. May is one of the game’s most exciting young pitchers. Unfortunately for baseball fans, he will be sidelined for a few more months.

5. Prediction!

We’re going to end with a prediction because I don’t see a good reason not to. The official prediction from CBS Sports: Dodgers win two out of three. The Dodgers have won six straight games and seemed to really pick up momentum over the weekend. The Braves are still trying to find a rhythm in the early stages. Doing that against a team as good as Los Angeles won’t be easy. Two very good teams, but in this three-game set, we’re predicting that the Dodgers will walk away with the series win.